New Camera

As a teen I learned a little about photography using my dad's Linhof 4x5 and Kodak

Retina. Money has always been tight, the first camera I bought was a K-Mart Minolta

SRT that I used for 20 yrs or so. I bought a used x-700 to use the lenses I had

accumulated but did not anticipate the swift disappearance of film and barely used

it. I have inherited a Canon Rebel XS, and at 63 and semi-retired want to take pictures

again. I am intrigued by the mirrorless camera's after seeing a Sony a6000 at the

local best buy. I have a budget of around 1,400. I have been considering the Sony

a6300 or Fuji film XT-1

I may never have this much money again to spend and the camera will hopefully last

a while.

Any suggestions?

<p>I've been eyeing the XT1 too, since prices have dropped since the XT2 came out. It is an impressive camera. I've borrowed a friend's and it is a fine instrument. I saw on the net that Sony has just announced the a6500, purportedly to replace the 8 month old a6300 which "apparently" has some issues (hearsay only).</p>

<p>I have another fixed lens Fuji and it is the cat's meow (in my opinion anyways). Next to Nikon or Canon, Fuji seems to be a real good builder of cameras.</p>

<p>Jim M.</p>

<p>I took a trip to Israel with a friend who used a Fuji and I had a Sony NEX-6, I think. A lot more of my images were keepers, though he is a great photographer. He likes the Fuji because the color is more subdued but probably a combination of settings and/or post-processing on the Sony could get to the same JPEG. The Sony system seems to have more legs. If you want to save some money you can buy my A6300! I will upgrade to the A6500 so that I can write about it. See http://philip.greenspun.com/travel/baltic-serenade-of-the-seas.html for a cruise that I took with my mom (contains links to the photos) and the A6300 was my only camera. For a realistic test of how a consumer would experience the camera I left it on green idiot mode nearly the entire time and used just one lens (a Sony/Zeiss 18-70 zoom).</p>

<p>Usually 'last a while' and 'digital' are not in the same sentence. Depends on what you mean by "...a while" Certainly nothing like your 20 years with the SRT. But 5~7 years would be reasonable I think for a current mirrorless offering.</p>

<p>The term "Last for a while" needs to be redefined for digital cameras. <br>

1. It can be how long would the camera last before something breaks.<br>

2. It can be how long would I want to use the same cameras while there are so many newer/better cameras out there.</p>

<p>As long as how long the camera really last. I have cameras bought since 2001 and still functioning like new today. </p>

Y'all are right about the lifespan of today's electronics and I wasn't thinking.

I am joining to to check out the a6500 before I buy.

Y'all are right about the lifespan of today's electronics and and I wasn't thinking. I

hardly ever wear anything out before moving to the newest device.

I am going to to check out the a6500 before I buy. I just wonder why another updated

model was put out rather quickly on the heals of the a6300 that was supposed to fix

a6000 shortcomings.

Philip, I enjoyed your cruise writeup and the pictures you took. Makes me want to take

one, but I have to see the states first.

Hopefully with my new camera.

<p>Sometimes buying just discontinued models make good economic sense. New in box with full warranty but discontinued can run a 30~40 percent discount over introduction price. The feature changes between the latest and 2 year old model sometimes are not major improvements in IQ or they don't address any of the features you find important to you personally. Just another thing to factor in to a purchase decision.</p>

<p>Just buy a bunch of film for your Rebel. It's capable of taking very serviceable photos, and stick the rest of the money in the bank or spend it on framing some of your shots. I once had your camera along w/ it's much maligned 35-80 kit zoom lens, and it took great photos.</p>

<p>Digital cameras almost end up having their pics shown online, or stuck in a computer. When you get your film developed you can opt for some small prints, and those will allow you to pick which ones to have enlarged. Just make sure you go to the right place for developing and printing your negs, as many places don't return your negs anymore! Incredibly stupid, but there you are.</p>

<p>Dwayne's Photo is a great place to send your film for processing. I never understood taking pics and not putting the keepers on the wall. That's the whole idea of photography. </p>

Y'all have made some good suggestions I did not consider. I had talked myself into

the a6500 when it comes out, but John's suggestion is good and since I'm just getting

back into taking pictures I will wait a little and see what the price of an a6300 settles

out to be. I'm looking at used also, just wonder how smart that is with no warranty.

Reading another post here about using film camera's for b&w may be what I do and I

will check into Dewayne's Photo also. I have a few pictures hung in the house from 20

years ago but no new ones. I got a digital frame just so some of my digital pictures

are seen.

The Fuji. Fuji keeps your camera current with firmware updates. Sony tries to sell you a new model. They already

announced an A6500 only 8 months after the A6300 came out. Fuji just put out new firmware for the X-Pro1, which is a

2012 model.

Also, this: http://petapixel.com/2016/10/10/rant-photographers-lost-north-stop-endless-gear-debates/

 

Relatively small differences in measurable image quality factors is much less important than whether the camera's user

interface and ergonomics feel good to you and whether the lenses you want are available in your price range.

<p>If I shoot B&W I wouldn't use a lab to make my print. I would have to do it myself. The A6300 isn't that expensive and the cost of the A6300 won't buy you that much film and processing. About 3000 shots.</p>

Others will know better then I, but when I was looking at the Sony offerings when searching for a new digital camera and then after reading

rmany reviews, it became apparent that their warranty service especially, or any service apparently, is lacking. This of course does not mean

that their drop out rate is any higher then any one elses as far as I read, just to pay attention to the need for service, parts and turn around

times. This is why many stick to Nikon and Canon.

My question for you is, are you setup for post processing from a computer, screen and software perspective regardless of printing which is

unto it's self can be a mony pit, depending of course on your needs. I eventually decided that my needs were fully satisfied by one of my film

cameras in addition to my older Panasonic mirrorless.

No, I am not set up to any computer processing at this time, my pc needs replacing, I was

thinking Mac Mini sometime in the future. My dad digitized a lot of his negatives from the

50's and 60's and had a large format printer at one time, probably outdated now.

I want the smaller mirrorless camera for travel. Maybe 2 lens.

I ended up with a new a6000 kit with 2 zoom lens and bought a used pancake zoom to go with it. A couple of prime lenses in the near future and an a6500 body in the distant future.